Shin-ei Companion FY-2

The Shin-ei Companion FY-2 is a discontinued fuzz box which was made by the Shin-ei company in the 1970s in Japan. FY-2 pedals are considered a rarity, and can be occasionally found on eBay and Reverb.com.

Different versions were made, most used silicon transistors. These had a Tone switch added which lowered the volume. The sound from these was the so-called classic chainsaw buzz.

An earlier version - ultra rare- used Germanium Transistors.
These did not have the tone circuit and therefore had a very loud output. The circuit lent itself to a natural gating making the unit rather quiet, even when playing the noise floor is quite low.
The sound from these is very rich, fluid and thick. Creating classic fuzz/buzz and brass tones.
The fuzz control when increased did not change the volume too much, this makes it good for a clean / fuzzy adjustment via the guitar volume output.